Did you earn a beer-tour plaque at Peoria Hofbrau? Here's how to claim it

Phil Luciano, Journal Star
·3 min read

PEORIA — Though the Peoria Hofbrau remains closed and on the market, its heartiest beer-drinking clientele can grab a souvenir.

Henrietta Patty, a longtime manager of the pub, has been taking down hundreds of small wall plaques earned by members of the Hofbrau’s World Beer Tour. If you earned one or more plaques — or, in the case of one suds-sucking regular, way over 100 — you can claim them.

“I want people to have them,” Patty says.

In 1984, the business was started at 2210 NE Jefferson Ave. by Art and Hedwig Guzman, who leaned on her generations-old family recipes and his global experience in the food industry. The Guzman clan — including the couple's offspring like Patty — developed a menu that accented German staples such as wienerschnitzel, along with an assortment of sausages and soups.

In this photo from the Peoria Hofbrau in the mid-1980s, owner Art Guzman (right) stands with daughter Henrietta Patty and son Andy Guzman, who worked there as managers.
In this photo from the Peoria Hofbrau in the mid-1980s, owner Art Guzman (right) stands with daughter Henrietta Patty and son Andy Guzman, who worked there as managers.

Meanwhile, from its earliest days, the Hofbrau was revered for its vast selection of imported and hard-to-find beers, long before the modern craft-beer explosion. To encourage customers to experience different beers, the business started handing out small cards for its World Beer Tour.

Participation was simple: Drink a beer and get your card stamped — but only one brand per card. Drink 50 different beers — no time limit — and you’d get your name on a small plaque on the wall. Other prizes included T-shirts, at least one of which is for sale on eBay.

Craving something new?: These 12 Peoria-area restaurants have opened in 2021

Over time, the threshold was raised repeatedly. Otherwise, the Hofbrau could have run out of wall space. By 2015, visitors needed to hit 100 beers to get their name on the wall.

Some names appear once. Many appear multiple times. One is up there 100-plus times.

These plaques are among hundreds pulled from the walls of the shuttered Peoria Hofbrau, 2210 NE Jefferson St. The plaques were earned by customers who completed the World Beer Tour at the Hofbrau, which is now closed and for sale. Henrietta Patty, longtime manager of the pub, is offering to send the plaques to the customers who earned them.
These plaques are among hundreds pulled from the walls of the shuttered Peoria Hofbrau, 2210 NE Jefferson St. The plaques were earned by customers who completed the World Beer Tour at the Hofbrau, which is now closed and for sale. Henrietta Patty, longtime manager of the pub, is offering to send the plaques to the customers who earned them.

Most Hofbrau beers ran several dollars apiece. Multiply that by 100, and the tour became a sizable investment — yet one many beer aficionados gladly made. For them, with the fervor of an Olympic athlete chasing the gold, it was about earning a Hofbrau plaque.

But no more.

The Peoria Hofbrau property, 2210 NE Jefferson Ave., was put on the market in February. The pub, a favorite for German food and drink for four decades, announced a temporary shutdown in the summer of 2020, party because of COVID-19 but also because of a family squabble over the direction of the business.
The Peoria Hofbrau property, 2210 NE Jefferson Ave., was put on the market in February. The pub, a favorite for German food and drink for four decades, announced a temporary shutdown in the summer of 2020, party because of COVID-19 but also because of a family squabble over the direction of the business.

Won't reopen as Peoria Hofbrau

Hedwig Guzman died in 2012. Art Guzman, 92, still owns the business. But it shut down in the summer of 2020, at first because of pandemic-triggered economic trouble. But later, per a post on the now-defunct Hofbrau Facebook page, other reasons kept the doors closed: “Originally we closed for the COVID shutdown but soon realized that not everyone in the family has the same idea of moving forward. As time continues to move on, only the right moves will result in a time to reopen.”

Closed during COVID: 30 Peoria-area restaurants, businesses that closed for good during coronavirus pandemic

Instead, in February the place was put up for sale — and remains on the market. Patty says the site will never reopen as the Peoria Hofbrau, which as a business is not for sale. A new owner would have to create a new name and profile, she said.

With that in mind, Patty does not want to leave the plaques behind.

“Who knows what’s going to happen to the building?” she said.

This photo, from the early 20th century, shows Delaney's Grocery & Meat Market at what is now 2210 NE Jefferson St. in Peoria. That address later became the home of the Peoria Hofbrau, which is now closed and for sale.
This photo, from the early 20th century, shows Delaney's Grocery & Meat Market at what is now 2210 NE Jefferson St. in Peoria. That address later became the home of the Peoria Hofbrau, which is now closed and for sale.

So, she has been spending countless hours inside the place, turning a small screwdriver over and over and over to pluck plaques off the wall.

“There’s quite a few hundred,” she said. “It’s history. Some of these people aren’t with us anymore, like (Journal Star writers) Jerry Klein and Rick Baker.

“It’s amazing — amazing memories.”

She isn’t sure what to do with the plaques of the departed, along with those that bear nicknames, song lyrics or other non-personal messages. But if your name made the wall, she invites you to send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Henrietta Patty, 284 E. Far Hills Drive, East Peoria, IL 61611.

This illustration was given to the Peoria Hofbrau by frequent customer Jack Bradley, a longtime Journal Star photographer.
This illustration was given to the Peoria Hofbrau by frequent customer Jack Bradley, a longtime Journal Star photographer.

Want a brew?: This fast-growing Illinois craft brewery plans a rooftop bar, restaurant in Washington

If you have more than one plaque, don’t worry about extra postage, as she is willing to pick up the tab. She calls it a small price to pay for all of the years of dedicated customers.

“They were wonderful,” she said.

PHIL LUCIANO is a Journal Star columnist. He can be reached at pluciano@pjstar.com, 309-686-3155 or 800-225- 5757, ext. 3155. Follow him at facebook.com/philluciano and on Twitter @LucianoPhil.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Patrons of closed Peoria Hofbrau can get their world beer-tour plaques